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(No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 1. D. HURLEY.

STRAIGET KNITTING MACHINE. No. 435,181. Patented Aug. 26, 1890.

(No Model.\ 4 5 Sheets--Sheet 2. D. HURLEY. STRAIGHT KNITTING MACHINE.

No. 435,181. Patented Aug. 26,1890.

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(No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 4. D. HURLEY.

STRAIGHT KNITTING MACHINE. No. 435,181. I Patented Aug. 26; 1890.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DANIEL IIURLEY, OF BENNINGTON, VERMONT, ASSlGNOR TO CHARLES COOPER, OF SAME PLACE.

STRAIGHT-KNITTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 435,181, dated August 26, 1890. Application filed April 24, 1890. Serial No. 349,356. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DANIEL IIURLEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bennington,in the county of Bennington and State of Vermont, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Straigl1t-Knitting Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification.

My invention relates to straight-knitting machines, and has for its object to provide certain improved devices for alternately feeding different threads or yarns t0 the needles, to provide improved devices for operating, the presser-bar, to provide an improved patternoperating mechanism, and to provide an improved construction of falling bar for controlling the sinkers.

To these ends my invention consists in the improved constructions and combinations of parts hereinafter fully described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front view of a knittingmaehine embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a rear view, Fig. 3 a top view, and Fig. 4 an end view, of the same. Fig. 5 is a cross-section on line 5 5 ofFig. 2. Figs. 6, 7, 8, and 9 are views of details of the falling bar to illustrate its construction and operation.

'A denotes the machine-frame, and B the main or cam shaft journaled in suitable bearings therein.

C is a cam carried by the said shaft, and D is a lever pivoted to the frame A and acted on by the said cam, sa'id lever carrying a pawl E, which engages with a ratchet-wheel F, fast with a sprocket or carrying wheel G, rotating on a suitable pin or stud g on the frame A. Around the wheel G passes the pattern-chain II, which is provided with cam projections U, whichin the movement of the chain are adapted to come in contact with an arm I, fast on a horizontal rock-shaft J, journaled in bearings in the frame A, and turn the said shaft. The shaftJ is provided with arms K, supportto the extreme left at one revolution of the shaft and back to its original position at the next succeeding revolution.

M and M are guide-bars arranged in different horizontal planes and suitably supported on the frame A, and on which. guidebars are mounted, to slide horizontally,the thread-carriers m and m the former having a lug m and the latter an arm m either of which, as desired, may be engaged by a fork L on the slide L and be caused to partake of the horizontal movements of the slides L and O.

When the arm I is free from contact with the cam projections U on the pattern-chain H, the rock-shaft J and the bar K supported thereby remain in position to keep the fork L of the slideL in engagement with the lower thread-guide m to operate the latter, and when the said cam is carried against said arm by the onward movement of the patternchain the shaft J is rocked and the bar K lifted so as to raise the slide L and free its fork L from the lug m of the lower threadguide m and cause said fork to engage the arm m of the upper thread-guide m thus permitting the thread-guide m to remain at rest and causing the thread-guide m to be reciprocated. The shifting of the slide L Vertically, so as to disengage its fork L from one thread-guide and engage said fork with the other thread-guide always occurs at the same end of the machine, this resulting from the fact that the pattern-chain is moved forward only during alternate rotations of the camshaft, as will presently be described, while the operating-lever Q makes one complete to-and-fro movement for every two revolutions of the said cam-shaft.

In order that the pawl E may be prevented from acting on the ratchet-wheel F excepting at each alternate revolution of the cam-shaft B, said pawl has a depending tail-piece e, and a sliding rod T is mounted in bearings S on the machine-frame in position to be struck by the lever Q as it swings toward said red,

the latter thereby being moved endwise so asto cause its outer end to be projected into the path of movement of the tailpiece c of the pawl E, just as an upward movement is given to said pawl by the action of the cam C 011 the lever D, thus throwing the upper or actuating end of said pawl out of engagement with the rachet-wheel F and preventing said pawl from moving said wheel during the revolution of the cam-shaft occurring at this ti me. As the lever Q moves away from the rod T, the latter is retracted by the spring '15 surrounding the same, so that at the next revolution of the cam-shaft the pawl E will actuate the ratchet-wheel F in its normal manner.

Supported on the stud g is an upright 1, to which is pivoted a lever 2, connected by a rod 3 with an arm 4 on a longitudinally-movable shipper-rod 22, provided with an arm 21, adapted, as the said rod is rocked in its bearings, to be moved into or out of the path of movement of the lever Q. lever 2 is fixed a cam-plate 10, having an irregular engaging portion to receive the up per end of a dog 11, pivoted to a bracket 12, attached to the upright 1. The dog 11 below its pivot is forked or divided into the two arms or members 1 1 11 ,'which are offset from each other so as to be in different lateral planes. The chain H carries offsetpins 24 and 25, the former of which is in line with the arm or member 11, and the latter of which is offset from the pin 24 so as to be in line with the member 11", the pin 25 being longer than the pin 24. As the chain moves forward, the pin 24, coming in contact with the member 11" of the dog, throws the latter to the position shown in full lines in Fig. 4, raising the lever 2 and, through the connections described, turning the shipper-rod 22 so as to throw its arm 21 out of the path of movement of the lever Q. The parts remain in this position until the pin 25 strikes the member 11 of the dog 11, and owing to the fact that the lower end of said member and the upper face of said pin are beveled or chamfered off, as shown, the said dog is moved to the position denoted by dotted lines in Fig. 4, thus lowering the said lever and turning the shipper-rod to bring the arm 21 into the path of movement of the lever Q. The cam-plate 10 is held in contact with the dog 11 by a spring 123, herein shown as being connected with the arm 4 of the shipper-rod 22 and to the machine-frame. Between collars 20, attached to red 22, are arms 18, the free ends of which engage the necks of rollers 17, mounted on pins 29 on levers 6, pivoted on standards a and connected at their forward ends by rods 7 with levers 8, carrying the presser 13, which is adapted for engage- To the side of the.

ment with the beards of the needles 14 and and 15, the said needles being mounted and operated in the usual manner, and the said presser being lifted by a spring or springs 30. The rollers 17 are mounted loosely on the pins 29, and may be moved lengthwise of the said pins.

On the shaft B are cams 16, adapted normally for engagement with the rollers 17 to depress the levers 6 andthus depress the Presser-bar; but when in the operation of the machine the arm 21 is in the path of movement of the lever Q the shipper-rod will be moved endwise, and will thus carry the roll ers 17 laterally away from the planes of rotation of the cams 16, so that the presser-bar will not be depressed and in consequence the loops will not be cast off from the horizontal needles 15, thereby occasioning a mispress and changing the character of the stitch. The shipper-rod 22 is retracted by the spring 26, so as again to place the rollers 17 within the range of the cam 16.

The sinkers I) are operated in the usual manner. The falling bar, by which the movements of the sinkers are governed,is composed of two parts 0 and c, the body or main part or bar 0 of which is fixed to the machineframe, while the part c or so-called impactbar is longitudinally movable on the upper side of the bar 0, said impact-bar being engaged by one end of a laterally-moving bar (I. This bar (1 is located at one end of the machine adjacent to the pattern-chain and its actuating devices, and is in engagement with the corresponding end of part c. It is pressed in one direction by a spring d and moved positively in the opposite direction by a cam f, herein shown as being on the side of the ratchet-wheel F, the said cam having two acting surfaces of different heights engaging a pin or projection Z at the side of the bard;

but the said cam may be on any suitable camwheel, such as is now in use in this class of machines. The impact-bar c is provided on its under side with a single projection c and with a recess 0 and in the upper surface of the bar 0 is a recess 0 adapted to receive the said projection 0 The bar 0 is provided IIO with two vertically-adjustable lifting-pins c 0 the upper surfaces of which are beveled, as shown, the project-ion 0 being also beveled at one end, so as to ride up easily 011 said pins. The said pins are each formed with a rack at one side engaged by pinions on small adj listing-shafts h, to the ends of which are secured by screws iindeX-pointers j, movable adjacent to scales or graduations on the face of the bar 0, said pointers being slotted for the reception of set-screws k to hold them in adjusted positions. The lifting-pin 0 projects above the lifting-pin c and this relative position will always be maintained, although the heights or actual projections of the pins above the upper surface of the bar c will be varied-as circumstances may require.

The construction just above described enables me to effect with a single projection on the impact-bar the production not only of close and tight stitches, such as are desirable in a welt, but also of stitches suitable for the main or body portion of a ribbed top or cuff and the loose or slack stitches of a slack course, while the rack-and-pinion connections between the lifting-pins and their adjustingshafts provide for the ready and accurate adjustment of said pins, thus providing for variations in the lengths of the stitches.

By the employment of the reciprocating rod T above described for rendering the pawl E inoperative at each alternate revolution of the camshaft, the speed of the feeding movements of the pattern-chain is reduced onehalf, so that the length of the chain may be correspondingly reduced, thus rendering the use of pattern-chains of about one-half the length of those usually employed in this class of machines possible. Also the employment of my improved thread-carrier and presserbar-controllin g mechanisms and my improved falling bar renders the operation of my machine more satisfactory than similar machines heretofore in use, as well as simplifying its construction.

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. The combination, with the thread-car riers and their supporting guide-bars arranged in different horizontal planes, of a vertically-movable slide adapted to engage the said thread-carriers, a rock-shaft having a bar engaging said slide, a horizontally-movable slide by which the first-named slide is operated, means for operating said rock-shaft to cause the said vertically-movable slide to be engaged with one or the other of the said tln'ead-carriers, as may be desired, and means for reciprocating the said horizontally-movable slide back and forth, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the pattern-chain ll, having one or more cam projections U and mechanism for operating said chain, of the roclcshaft J, having arms I and K, the bar K, carried by said arms K, the verticallymovable slide L, engaged by the said bar and having a fork L, the thread-carriers adapted to be engaged by said fork, the horizontal guidebars on which the said carriers reciprocate, the horizontally-movable slide O,by which said slide L is carried, and means for operating the said slide 0, substantially as described.

The combination, with the verticallymovahle presser-bar, its actuating-levers connected therewith, and the main lever, which operates the thread-carriers, of the cam-shaft having cams for operating the said lever and the said presser-bar-actuating levers, and devices which when desired may be operated by the said main lever to render the presserbar levers inoperative when it is desired that a mispress shall scribed.

4. The combination,with the pattern-chain H, having pins 24 and 25, of the lever 2, having the cam-plate 10, thepivoted dog 11,1'ocking and longitudinally-movable shipper-rod 22, having the arms 4, 18, and 21, the rod 3, connecting said lever with said arm 4, the main lever Q, the camshaft 13, having cams B and 10, the levers 6, having the laterallymovable rollers 17, engaged by the said arms 18, the rods 7, the levers 8, and the presser 13, carried by the said lovers 8, to operate substantially as described. I

5. The combination, with the pattern-chain and its carrying-wheel, of a ratchet-wheel to operate said carrying-wheel, a pawl for engagement with said ratchet-wheel, a pawl-carrying lever, a cam-shaft having a cam to operate said lever, a pawl-controlling rod, and means for reciprocating said rod and thereby placing it in position for engaging the tail of the pawl in each alternate upward movement of the pawl-carrying lever and thus rendering said pawl inoperative at each alternate rotation of the cam-shaft, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with the pattern-chain H and its carrying-wheel G, of the ratchetwheel F, to operate said carryingavheel, the pawl E, having a depending tail-piece e, the lever D, by which said pawl is carried, the sliding rod T,its retractingspring t, the main lever Q, in the path of which said rod is arranged, and the cam-shaft B, having the cams occur, substantially as de- B and C to actuate said levers Q and D, re-

spectively, substantially as set forth.

7. A falling bar for straight-knitting machines, composed of a main bar provided with two independently-adjustable liftingpins and a longitudinally-movable impactbar having a single projection to engage said pins as said impact-bar is moved lengthwise of the said main bar, substantially as set forth.

8. A falling bar for straight-knitting machines, composed of a main bar provided with with two independently-adjustable liftingpins having racks, and a longitudinally-movable impact-bar having asinglc projection to engage said pins as said impact-bar is moved lengthwise of the said main bar, and provided also with ad j Listing-shafts having pinions to engage said racks, substantially .as set forth.

9. A falling bar for straight-l nitting machines, composed of amain bar provided with two independently-adjustable lifting-pins and a lon gitudinally-mbvable impact-bar having a single projection to engage said pins as said impact-bar is moved lengthwise of the said main bar, combined With a cam in operative connection with saidimpact-bar having two acting surfaces to give two endwise move ments to said impact-bar, substantially as set forth.

10. A falling bar for straight-knitting mapact-bar having two acting surfaces to give chines, composed of a main bar provided two endwise m0vementst0 said impact-bar, with two independentlyadjustable liftingsubstantially as set forth. pins having racks, and a longitudinally-mov- In testimony whereof I affix my signature in 5 able impact-bar having a single projection to presence of two Witnesses. 1

engage said pins as said impact-bar is moved lengthwise of the said main bar, and pro- DANIEL IIURLEY.

vided also with adjusting-shafts having pin- Witnesses: ions to engage said racks, combined with a CHARLES S. KEHOE, 1o cam in operative connection with said im- EDWARD J. HALL. 

